


Cristoforo's Letter

by Philosophizes



Series: Hetalia Letters: A Fanwork Experiment [5]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Experiment, Fabricated Documents, Gen, Images, Religion, Transcripts Included
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-21
Updated: 2013-02-21
Packaged: 2017-11-30 00:17:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/693169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Philosophizes/pseuds/Philosophizes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A letter from the Vatican to his future bosses, heavy on the religious theorization.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cristoforo's Letter

 

 

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_Hetalia property of Hidekaz Himaruya; and this art letter has absolutely nothing to do with the actual government of the Federal Republic of Germany._

_Special thanks to[coffeesuperhero](../users/coffeesuperhero/pseuds/coffeesuperhero) and [sabinelagrande](../users/sabinelagrande/pseuds/sabinelagrande) here on AO3 for explaining to me how they did [something ](400257)similar._

* * *

 

** Transcript **

_A letter handwritten by the Vatican._

[A letterhead displays both the Papal and Vatican City coat-of-arms, ‘Sancta Sedes et Status Civitas Vaticanae’, and the mailing address of the Apolostic Palace]

 

_Christophorus Petrius Vicariō Iesu Christi et Praefecum Pontificiae Commissionis Stato Civitatis Vaticanae s.d._

                Your Holiness and Your Eminence, depending on the frequency and proximity of your presence in Rome, you may or may not already know me, or of me.

                In documentation, I am listed as ‘Christophorus Petrius’. In common discourse, I am ‘Cristoforo Pietri’. Officially, I am _Status Civitas Vaticanae et Sancta Sedes_ ; or _Stato della Citt_ _à del Vaticano e Santa Sede_ ; or the Vatican City State and the Holy See; etc.

                Your Eminence, if you have already held your position, please let His Holiness continue reading and add commentary as needed and desired. If you have not already held your position, please continue reading and note that I am subsequently going to address this letter to His Holiness out of convenience and respect unless otherwise necessary.

                I am unique amongst Nations, Your Holiness. Firstly; I have two superiors, yourself and His Eminence, with equal influence in your respective areas. In anything pertaining to the Vatican City State I report to Your Eminence; in matters of the Church and the Holy See, Your Holiness. Secondly; I am the only Nation to have a constitutionally religious component. There are many countries with official state religions, but I am the only one to _be_ the state religion. Thirdly; I am, in my religious aspect, essentially boundless. The Church transverses political, social, and economic boundaries- I am the smallest sovereign state in the world, but my influence, and by extension yours, Your Holiness, is vast.

               Use it wisely; with the guidance of God.

               Now- to more personal matters.

               I have family, Your Holiness. It is not much like any family you are likely to find anywhere else, and it is certainly not traditional or even particularly Catholic in any sense, but it is still family.

                First and foremost, I am a Christian; secondly, a Roman; and thirdly, an Italian. I currently have four brothers and two sisters: North Italy, South Italy, San Marino, Seborga, Sicily, and Sardinia. In the days when they called me the Papal States, I had many more, but God has since called them to His kingdom; having chosen us five to remain in this world to serve His people after the _Risorgimento_.

                 My sisters are my eldest siblings. Sicily is the eldest of us all, and is a very busy woman. She rarely comes to see me, and mostly speaks to South Italy if she must communicate with the mainland. The two of them are somewhat close, both having to deal with the trials of organized crime and sharing memories of a former marriage.

                 Your Holiness, please refrain from condemning them both for incest. It was political- we do not have choices in such things, and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was a form of government that they both shared. Their only feelings for each other were, at the time, mild disgust and mistrust. There were never any sexual relations involved, and both of them were happy to part. This sort of ‘marriage’ was once an accepted matter of course, when the boundaries and territories in Europe were more fluid in regards to ownership. Not one of these unions ever had a thing to do with love or commitment between the Nations involved, though occasionally such things developed as a result. I, personally, find such a designation for those situations to be a slanderous perversion of the Sacrament of Marriage, but there truly is not another word that accurately portrays the intimacy that is involved for both parties.

                 Sardinia is the second eldest of us, and prefers to have as little contact as possible with the world outside her island. She was once much more social, but currently feels cheated out of her shares in the Kingdom and the Republic of Italy; and perhaps rightfully so; but God found it fitting to bestow the duty of Nationhood for the Kingdom and the Republic on my elder brothers. I have attempted to help her come to terms with this, but she is not yet ready to listen.

                 South Italy, officially ‘Italia Romano’, whom I have already spoken some of, is the elder of the two Nations who represent the Republic.  He has no historical connection to Rome beyond being related to the Roman Empire and having the city as his capital, as Rome has been, since the fall of the Empire, my territory. Romano- ‘Lovino Vargas’, in common discourse- was and always will be, at least in part, Naples. He is a very violent and angry man; but devout, and loves deeply.

                 North Italy, officially ‘Italia Veneziano’- ‘Feliciano Vargas’ to nearly everyone who knows him- was actually the Republic of Venice. He is rather unlike Lovino in many ways. Feliciano is peaceful where Lovino is violent; joyous where he is wrathful; calm where he is frustrated and high-strung where he is indifferent- but the two of them both feel everything acutely, and hurt easily, and tend to think more with their hearts and souls than their heads.

                My brothers, along with much of Europe, are also at least somewhat homosexual. I do not know why this is so; and sometimes my worry for them keeps me up at night. I do know and acknowledge, however, that both have truly found love in other Nations who share their gender. I have not yet, despite veritable decades of prayer and contemplation, reached enlightenment about whether or not this is a natural, acceptable thing. I _know_ God’s word –it is imbued in my heart, and mind, and soul; it is the foundation of my existence- but I do not know how it pertains to those like us, for the Holy Book was dictated to humans, written for humans; to guide and show you your place in the world, to give you laws and hope and faith, to bring you to His love and presence.

               He created you of the dust of the earth and His breath; and threw you from Eden into the world. He sent His Son to you to deliver you from your sins.

               We Nations are great sinners, Your Holiness. We have many lifetimes in which to transgress against the teachings of the Lord; and carry the weight of those great crimes; the crimes of governments and countries: war crimes and crimes against humanity, state-sanctioned terrorism, genocide, unjust laws, persecution, mass executions, and all the many terrible, horrible, massive things that humanity is capable of against itself; the crimes too big to be attributed to any one person- those are the sins we carry and the sins we commit.

               We are murderers and thieves and liars and betrayers.

               I am called on periodically for spiritual guidance, but I fear that I am never as helpful or comforting as I would like. You, Your Holiness; and you, Your Eminence, and any of your colleagues or fellow men must simply go to the Holy Book for answers.

               Nowhere in God’s Word is there a mention of Nations.

               I do not know if there are laws that do not apply to us, or laws that we have no knowledge of, or if we are included in that category termed ‘mankind’. I do not know if Christ Our Lord died only for the sins of humans or for the sins of Man and Nation, individual and collective, mortal and not. I do not know if sins as grave as those we live with can ever truly be forgiven, or if our lack of completely free will exempts us, or if we must live eternally separate from Him and His mercy and love, in life and in death.

               I do the best I can, Your Holiness. I listen to their confessions, and complete the Sacrament; but it feels more and more hollow every time, every day that I live without knowing if the absolution I distribute has any value.

              It is hard, Your Holiness, very hard, to look at those you love and care for, whom you have known for decades and centuries, who know you nearly as well as you know yourself, and you the same in return- and think that they, and you yourself, may be unforgivable in the eyes of God.

              I long and fear for the day that I may receive an answer; for I will never be able to tell them that they are fundamentally evil and destined to be eternally separate from Him, and nor will I ever again be able to give them false hope by telling them that the Lord has absolved them of their sins. I will be unable to lie; and unable to tell the truth.

              Every day, Your Holiness, I pray for us. I pray that we may be forgiven, and glory in God and receive His love and mercy; and that if we may not be forgiven and loved by Him, that we live as good a life as we can, and fully cherish and experience every moment of joy and love that we may have with each other.

             I cannot ask my brothers to repent or feel guilt for loving and being loved in return when that may be the closest thing they will ever have to Heaven.

             Your Holiness, I beg of you- tolerate them, if for nothing else than the sake of diplomacy.

             I am something of the middle brother in my family. San Marino is a little younger than me, and content with his lot in life. He has never been very large, or wanted to be very large, and that is great blessing for a Nation. He has a bit of a disobedient streak, but shares the same faith and depth of emotion that we all seem to have.

             Seborga is a rather odd case. He is what we term a Micro-Nation, which has nothing inherently to do with the size of their territory. Micro-Nations are Nations who represent those people who, for whatever reason, have declared such areas as their house, or in Seborga’s case, their town, to be independent from whatever governing body would otherwise represent them. They are not acknowledged by us politically, and many are rather childish, but we are fortunate in that Seborga and Feliciano and Lovino have no real animosity towards each other and so can live as family.

             Soon, you will likely be meeting the other European Nations and possibly a few from elsewhere, as well. I will tell you now that most of them have ceased to be very religious, for various reasons, but none but a very few have completely abandoned the Church.

             Of special note are Prussia, Latvia, and Malta. All were once Crusaders, and though many European Nations have joined one or more of those wars, these three are special in that they were both originally religious orders. Prussia was once The Order of Brothers of the German House of St. Mary in Jerusalem; where he began as a caretaker of the sick and wounded but quickly turned to fighting, where he has stayed ever since. Latvia was one of his partners in associates after the Order returned to Northern Europe, and once fought for the faith as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword. Malta was once the Knights Hospitaller before being forced to flee from Acre and settle in Cyprus, then Rhodes, and finally Malta. All are old friends of mine and enjoy visits; though Prussia is constantly annoyed by tourists who see him around St. Peter’s and begin enquiring about the Priory of Sion, and he subsequently complains at length to me about these experiences.

            May God bless you and grant you health, strength, wisdom, and a good life.

                                                                 _Vale._

**Author's Note:**

>  _Christophorus Petrius Vicariō Iesu Christi et Praefecum Pontificiae Commissionis Stato Civitatis Vaticanae s.d. (Latin)_ \- Cristoforo Peitri says ‘health’ to the Vicar of Christ and the President of the Pontifical Commission of the Vatican City State
> 
>  _Vale (Latin)_ \- Goodbye


End file.
